Hog Heaven
by Melchy
Summary: Captain Gregg, Candy's boyfriend and a motorcyle. What do they have in common? More than you think.


The characters from the Ghost and Mrs. Muir belong to 20th Century Fox and David Gerber Productions. I do not own them, only borrow them. The other characters are mine and may not be used without my permission. The names Ducati and Harley Davidson are brand names and belong to their respective companies.

Hog Heaven

Candy called home the week before Thanksgiving asking if it would be all right if she brought home a friend for the holiday break.

"Of course it is Candy." her mother assured her. "You know we love to meet your friends. It wouldn't Rachel by any chance?"

Rachel Cunningham was Candy's roommate and had been since their first day at Temple University. She was very much a part of the family and they loved having her at Gull Cottage.

"No, it's not actually. " Candy shook her head, even if her mother couldn't see it. "Um, don't take this the wrong way but it's, well, it's a boy."

"A boy as in boyfriend?"

Daniel Gregg appeared at Carolyn Muir's side at just that moment. "Who has a boyfriend?"

"Candy." Carolyn said.

"Candy isn't allowed to date yet." he grumbled. "Not until she's 32."

"Shush, Daniel." Carolyn waved her hand in his direction. "Go on sweetie. What did you say his name was?"

"Derek. Derek Davis. He's a senior art major and we've been going out for about two months."

"I don't think you ever mentioned him before." her mother's voice held several questions.

'Oh, I'm sure I did. I must have. " Candy hedged.

"I really don't think so."

"I really think I did. But can I still bring him?"

"Or course you can. We will look forward to meeting him. When did you think you'll be here?"

"We should be there Monday night. I would think in time for dinner. Can he have the guest room?"

"I'll have Sarah make it up." Carolyn assured her. Sarah Cartwright was the housekeeper at Gull Cottage since Martha had married Ed Peavy several years ago and lived in her own home in Schooner Bay. The two of them operated Martha's Cookies Basket and people came from miles to buy the treats.

"Thanks Mom. And Mom, Captain Gregg will behave himself won't he?"

"As much as I can promise." her mother said. "We will look forward to seeing you both on Monday."

"What does she mean will I behave?" the seaman bristled. "I am always on my best behavior."

Carolyn went to the window, pushed it open and put her head out into the mild breeze that was blowing up from the ocean.

"What are you doing?"

"Looking for that bolt of lightning that should strike you. " she gave him a charming smile.

"I believe I've just been insulted."

"I believe you have too."

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Carolyn woke up that Monday, eager to get started on the day so that Candy would get there all the sooner. She was very proud of her girl, a junior Psychology major who had maintained the dean's list since her freshman year and was also on the school paper. There was a rumor that next year she would be made the editor, something Carolyn couldn't help but gloat about.

Candy had spent many vacations at home at first, but lately had spent her holidays with her friends skiing in the Poconos or going to Rehoboth or Cape May. Since her first year in college, she had probably become serious about a different boy every week, but this was the first one she had ever asked to bring home. "Which must mean he is very special." Carolyn said to her own reflection as she brushed her teeth and washed her face.

"And just what kind of name is Derek, I would like to know?" Daniel Gregg appeared at the bottom of the stairs as Carolyn tried to navigate her way into the kitchen.

"The one his parents gave him, I suppose." she didn't feel like arguing. Especially since she thought it was rather a strange name too. "I would really like it if you would move so I can get to my cup of coffee."

Jonathan had given his mother a huge mug for Mother' s Day thinking that perhaps she wouldn't drink as many cups if the one she had was larger. Apparently it was the furthest thing from her mind.

"What could they have been thinking?" he shook his head in dismay. "Naming their child after a device used to get oil out of the ground with?"

"Actually, I think that it's used for. " she began, but then cut herself off. "Never mind. I would really just like to get to my coffee, please."

"Have you nothing else on your mind?" the Captain motioned her blue mug from it's place on the kitchen table into her waiting hands. "Your daughter is bringing home a young man, and one with a name that sounds like it was built by Shell Oil."

Carolyn took a long sip of her coffee and then nodded. "And you promised to behave." she reminded him.

"I hate hiding. " he pouted.

"I know, but perhaps if he's the right sort you won't have to hide long. Take heart, Daniel."

"For Candy's sake, I will do my best. Now go and get your breakfast."

"Thank you. So kind of you sir." and she threw him a kiss.

"That woman! "

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Jonathan and his girl friend Ashley were the first ones to see the wall of dust coming toward the house that alerted Gull Cottage that someone was coming up the still unpaved road. They had both arrived at the family home on Saturday, Ashley taking the other half of Candy's room. She and Jonathan had been dating since high school and the pretty red head was considered to be part of the family. Ashley's father had died last year and she had lost her mother when she was a child.

"That doesn't sound like a car." Jonathan looked in the direction of the dust cloud. He took his girlfriend's hand and they headed down the road, the golden retriever Ahab at their heels.

"It's not a car. " she shook her head. "It sounds like a motorcycle! " she giggled. "A Ducati, if I miss my guess." Ashley's nickname was Smash as she was famous in Schooner Bay for having wrecked three cars, two motor bikes and a monster truck in the short four years she had been driving. Speed and Smash were quite a pair, one that spelled disaster. But try as she might, she couldn't resist when she got behind the wheel of anything with an engine.

Sure enough just as Smash had predicted, a motorcycle went flying past them, kicking up even more of a dust cloud and making Ahab bark.

"Wow!" Smash dragged Jonathan up to the Ducati, barely waiting for the driver to stop it.

"It's the newest model isn't it?" she couldn't resist touching it.

"Hot off the rack." the leather clad man hopped off the bike, removing his helmet. "Need some help there, Can?" he reached over and unhooked her helmet.

"Thanks honey." she shook her shoulder length blond hair out of it's knot. "So, JJ what do you think? I can see Smash likes it."

"Like it?" the girl couldn't keep her eyes off of it. "I think I'm in love."

'Mom is going to murder you. ' was all Jonathan could say. "Did you tell her, that you were coming on a motorcycle?"

"No, but she didn't ask."

Ahab's barking had brought Carolyn out to meet the visitors, her happiness at seeing her little girl temporarily masking her means of arrival. "I'm so happy to have you here." she hugged her, pushed her hair back, kissed her forehead, and then hugged her once more. "I've missed you, we all have."

"I missed you too, Mom." Candy told her as she returned her mother's hug, happy to be back home.

Carolyn looked over her daughter's head at the young man standing behind her and she gave him a smile. "I'm pleased to meet you Derek. " she extended her hand, which he shook warmly.

"Thank you for inviting me Mrs. Muir."

"We are always happy to meet Candy's friends." she told him.

"We?"

"Me, Jonathan, Ashley, Ahab. Martha and Ed will be up for dinner tomorrow night, Candy. And of course will be here on Thanksgiving."

"I can't wait to see ,um, everyone." Candy nodded. "But right now, I really have to use the bathroom." She turned to get her knapsack off the back of the motorcycle, bringing the vehicle under her mother's scrutiny.

"Well, isn't this quite a, a thing." she couldn't find the words she wanted.

"It's a Ducati." Ashley told her with glee. The newest model."

"Well, I'm very happy to hear that. " Carolyn heard herself say. "Especially since it just made a 5 hour trip.

"Don't worry, Mrs. Muir." Derek was saying. "This little beauty is completely safe. I will never drive a car again."

"Never?" her mind conjured up pictures of Candy in her wedding dress, sitting on the back of the bike, her veil flowing in the breeze.

"Never. " he nodded. He got his own bag off the back of the bike and slung it over his shoulder. "Where would you like me to put my things?"

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"Whatever it is, I don't like it." Daniel Gregg was pacing back and forth in front of the fireplace in the master bedroom. "And he had no right to bring Candy on a journey on such a contraption."

"It's called a motorcycle. " she looked from the dressing table where she was brushing her hair. "A Ducati, actually." she smiled at Smash's eagerness. "But no, I don't like it anymore than you do. Not to mention did you see that leather jacket and tight, tight jeans he was wearing?"

"No, but I did see the ones your daughter was wearing. " he stopped mid pace. "What the devil is that girl thinking?"

"You do crazy things for love. " Carolyn said softly, laying her brush down.

"Do you think she's in love with that boy?"

"No, but I think she thinks she is. And by the way you were very good tonight."

"I somehow don't think that Derek is going to be the type of boy that I can show myself too." he grumbled.

"I'm sorry. " Carolyn came over to stand beside him, taking his hand and squeezing it before letting it drop. "But it's not the first time."

"I still can't believe he brought our girl home on that machine." he fumed. "Do men not have any manners left?" he was starting to fume again.

"I don't like it anymore than you do, but I really don't know anything we can do about it. She's 21 years old, we can't exactly send her to her room or anything."

"I suppose not. " he sat down on the edge of the bed. "I just wish there was someway we could have kept her from growing up. "

"That wouldn't have been fair." Carolyn sat down beside him. "But I often wish the same thing."

The Captain looked deep into her eyes. "You best get to sleep. It's been a long day and you and the girls have that shopping trip planned.

"I am tired. " she stifled a yawn. "I will see you in the morning?"

'Have I missed one yet?"

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He wasn't going to touch it, he was only going to get a closer look at it. At least that's what Daniel Gregg told himself. Sure he had seen motorcycles before but never up close. What was it Smash called it?--A Ducati?

It looked sturdy enough he thought as he got down on the ground and looked up at the underside. The tires looked different than an automobile's but felt fairly much the same. He got up and walked around it once and then again. The seat was small and he couldn't help but think that two people sharing a ride would have to be awfully close to one another.

It wouldn't hurt to sit on the contraption he decided and lowered his long legs over the seat. It was rather like riding a horse he thought and would definitely take some getting used too. "I wonder how many times Candy has been on this thing to be able to endure a 5 hour ride without walking bow-legged. He would rather not think about it.

The speedometer went up much further than he liked to think of anyone going. The gas tank said it was half full and he noticed there was even a radio. He gripped the handlebars and placed one foot up on the running board and before he realized it, he had turned the motor on holding on as it seemed to have a life of it's own and headed down toward the beach.

It took several minutes for him to remember that if he fell off, it wouldn't kill him. After that he was able to relax and actually began to enjoy himself. The wind blew through his hair in a way that reminded him of his days on the water and the roar of the motorcycle vibrated in his ears. This was quite remarkable.

He went much further than he meant too and found he had to drag himself back to the front yard, parking the bike in what he hoped was the exact same place he had taken it from. The helmet had fallen off the back, when he had jerked the machine on, so he carefully put it back where it belonged, made sure that everything was set and quietly went back to the house.

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"I could have sworn I heard my bike last night. " Derek said at breakfast the next morning as he helped himself to more pancakes.

"It's probably just because you were on it so much yesterday." Candy passed him the syrup. "I thought I heard it too, but I'm sure it was just part of my dream."

"I'm sure you are right." he poured the maple syrup over his stack and let it soak in. "I mean it's still sitting right where I left it."

"I often dream of engines." Smash laughed as she took the bacon from Jonathan.

"Yeah and how many of them she can run into the ground." he teased her.

"Meanie!"

"Are you a mechanic, Ashley?" Derek looked over at her.

'No, " she shook her head, trying not to laugh. "I just like cars, bikes, trucks, motorcycles. My father was a mechanic and he taught me a lot of what he knew. But mostly I like to take out cars and see what they can do."

"Like how many times they roll before they land on their roofs. Candy laughed.

'Good morning." Carolyn sat down, taking the cup of coffee Sarah handed her. "Derek were you out on your bike last night? I thought I heard it around 3 or 4."

"No, Mrs. Muir , I wasn't." he shook his head. "But I heard it too actually." Maybe it was the power of suggestion."

"Could be." she nodded, but the look on her face was thoughtful. "I'm sure that's what it was."

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Derek took the bike into Schooner Bay to make sure that it hadn't suffered any wear on the trip and to put more gas in it. "I thought we still had half a tank." he told Candy as they filled the motorcycle up and washed the windshield.

"I thought we did too.." she shrugged. "But maybe the last time we stopped we didn't get any. All though I thought we did."

"Me too. But no big deal."

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Daniel told himself he wasn't going to do it again. But when the house was quiet, the motorcycle began to call out to him and he couldn't resist. Once more he sat down on the seat, grabbed the handlebars and kicked the engine into start. It ran much more smoothly this time and he was able to guide it where he wanted to go. The wind whistled around him as he took it down the beach, the sand kicking up around them, the sound of the bike mixing with the waves and night-creatures. This was one of the most amazing things he had ever come across. He stayed out much longer this time, the dawn starting to twinkle over the ocean as he parked the bike in it's spot and materialized back into the house. But this was the last time.

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Wednesday night, Daniel headed for the bike, eager to get to his new toy, almost there when Carolyn seemed to pop out of nowhere and dangled the key in front of him. "So, it has been you. " the key still in her hand. "I thought as much but at first it didn't make sense. I mean you and the machine. But when Derek has had to fill the gas tank for the last two nights and we all think we hear it in our dreams, well you were the first one I thought of."

"Aren't I always the first one you think of" he gave her a leering smile.

"You wish. " she smiled, taking a moment to run her hand down his chest. "But seriously Daniel, I never would have thought of you riding this um, monster."

"Actually, it's rather quite well, fun. " he told her. "It's one of the most amazing things I've ever experienced. You should come with me and see."

"I am very serious." he nodded. "Come on. You won't regret it. Please." his voice pleading in that way she couldn't resist.

"Well, I always did want to ride one. " she confessed.

That's all she needed to say. He handed her the helmet and made sure it was set securely on her head, then got on the bike. She slid in behind him, her legs closing over the leather seat, her arms going around his waist.

"Are you ready?"

"You don't need the key?" she asked him. "I should have figured that."

"No, but don't lose it and hang on .She nodded even though he couldn't see it and dropped the small silver key inside her shirt, knowing it would be safe there.

He started the motor and the bike zoomed out of the yard and down the dirt road, heading for the beach. Carolyn leaned against his broad back, closing her eyes at first but soon was able to open them and look around. He was right, it was amazing. It was the best adrenaline rush she had ever experienced and she knew that it would be very hard not to ever do this again.

They took the Ducati down on the beach and parked it up by a rock up cropping. Sliding off they walked down the shore, enjoying being able to spend time together, talking about Derek and what they thought of the boy.

They stayed much longer than they meant too and rode very fast as they headed for home. They had almost made it inside the gate at Gull Cottage, when the front door opened and Derek walked out. What he saw, made the boy rub his eyes, blink several times and rub his eyes again. Candy's mother was riding his motorcycle, but she was sitting in the very back, her arms looking like they were around someone, someone who was not there and the bike was heading straight for the porch.

Carolyn realizing that Derek could not of course see Daniel, reached for the handlebars, her short arms not quite making the reach,. praying she wouldn't crash.

"Daniel, do something. "she hissed, then realized that he was no longer on the bike. Trying to keep her balance, she moved up the seat, her foot landing on the accelerator, the bike lunging towards the monkey puzzle tree, Carolyn closing her eyes and hoping she wouldn't wake up dead.

The Ducati came to a dead stop and she opened her eyes, her hands clenched to the leather seat.

"Mrs. Muir!" Derek came running down the steps. "That was amazing."

Candy came out on the porch, just in time to see her mother struggle from the bike, take two steps and fall to the ground. "Mom!" she ran down to help her up. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." she told her. "Just help me to the porch."

"I had no idea your mother was into trick riding." Derek followed them up. "That was incredible. You could go professional, Mrs. Muir. But you didn't need to sneak the bike out, I would have let you ride it."

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Derek and Candy left Saturday morning heading back to Temple, Jonathan and Ashley leaving a few hours later to get back to work at The University of Maine. Derek thanked Carolyn for letting him stay and she invited him back but had a feeling she might never see the young man again. Apparently he had told Candy that her mother was just a bit strange.

"It's back to quiet." Daniel sighed as the car with the last two pulled down the road. "I will miss them."

"Me too. " Carolyn nodded. "I know it's part of growing up, but I miss them just the same."

"Well, at least we have something to help entertain us now" he laughed.

"And what would that be?"

He threw her a package that contained a black leather jacket and a pair of blue jeans and then showed her he had once as well. "Put this on, lady, and then we can go riding on the Hog."

She looked in the direction where he was pointing and saw a bright red Harley Davidson. She shook her head, laughing hysterically. "Give me five minutes?"

"Starting now." he pulled a watch out of his pocket.

This was going to be fun.


End file.
